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The Catholic primary schools that have boosted their NAPLAN results the most, thanks to a new way of teaching, have been revealed.
One of the schools doubled the percentage of students sitting in the “exceeding” and “developing” proficiency bands for numeracy as they moved from year 3 in 2023 to year 5.
Bethany Catholic Primary School students Rudraksh, Patrick, Paytyn, Adoniyas, Althea, Lexi and Charlotte. Credit: Jason South
The schools attribute the success to the early adoption of explicit teaching, curriculum resources such as lesson plans for teachers, professional development and good, old-fashioned whiteboards.
The Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools analysed students’ NAPLAN results after they overhauled how students learn reading, writing and maths at all their 291 primary schools in February 2024.
It showed those who had been early adopters of the evidence-based teaching philosophy and behaviour instruction were lifting student results by as much as 46 percentage points.
Bethany Catholic Primary School principal Joanne Webster saw her year 3 students’ numeracy results increase by 22 percentage points by the time they reached year 5 in 2025.
Webster said the Werribee North school had begun with teaching students positive learning behaviours in 2022, then added explicit instruction in 2023. She said the school was also receiving classroom curriculum resources such as lesson plans, which had made a significant difference.
She said the whole-school approach ensured teachers shared a common language across every year level and took part in professional learning.
“Teachers have a shared common language and that’s significant because the professional learning has certainly built the capacity of our leaders to be what we would call instructional leaders,” Webster said.
“It has been a journey, and has been across three years, and we are really excited to see our improvement.”
Webster said when it came to behaviour, the school set clear expectations and routines, and success in student outcomes also drove momentum in teachers wanting to do more.
Explicit instruction promotes direct teaching over student-led or inquiry-based learning, breaking down new concepts into smaller steps and modelling each step before progression. The method is underpinned by an evidence-based, scientific understanding of how students learn.
The decision by the Catholic school sector to switch to the teaching model was followed by the state’s public system.
Victoria Education Minister Ben Carroll announced the roll-out of explicit teaching for all government schools in June 2024 in a bid to boost students’ performance.
Victorian students recorded either the best or second-best NAPLAN results in the country in 18 of the 20 categories in 2025.
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The Melbourne Archdiocese of Catholic Schools chief of education, strategy and performance, Shauna-Maree Sykes, said there had been significant improvements in NAPLAN numeracy data across their schools.
“Our data demonstrates a wide-spread shift in the proficiency levels of our students in year 3, 5, 7 and 9 in numeracy,” Sykes said.
“A large proportion of MACS schools have statistically significant improvements, impacting upon the overall increase in our numeracy proficiency.”
Sykes said while it was still early in the change to teaching methods, they expected student results would continue to improve.
St Francis of Assisi in Mill Park topped the list of improvers after moving to a new approach five years ago.
Deputy principal Will Kent said while it was a “big change”, they were seeing the results of their efforts.
The school invested small whiteboards for each student in their 53 classrooms and even new seating arrangements.
“The use of the whiteboards allows for every child to be accountable and engaged,” he said.
“That was another physical shift in the classroom.
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“We were going from tables set up in groups in the classroom to every classroom ... set up in rows all facing the front, the teacher, the expert in the classroom.”
Kent said that helped kids pay attention, improved their behaviour and allowed teachers to filter through the classroom and give feedback.
MACS executive director Edward Simons said when students were given consistent, evidence-based teaching, they could achieve at the highest levels, no matter their background.
“These results show that with the right approach, every student can achieve and improve. A focus on explicit, structured teaching can transform outcomes. That’s what we’re beginning to see here,” Simons said.
“When students feel known and valued and have a strong sense that they belong, and when teachers are equipped with the best evidence-based practices, the results speak for themselves.”
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